Parker
History Little is known about the woman known only as Parker. Her early life in the foster system is wrought with abuse, neglect, and several early traumas that have left Parker emotionally scarred to the point her emotional responses are skewed. Before she was 12, she was a getaway driver. Sometime after that, she met a boy called Kelly in foster care. Kelly taught her how to boost cars and they worked together as a team until they boosted a bait car. He escaped the police, leaving Parker to serve 6 months in juvie. In the episode 'The Boost Job', she taught a girl with a nickname 'Shortie' how to steal a car, along with Hardison, who taught Shortie how to hack a car's system while they both (Hardison and Parker) were still undercover. She tries to warn Shortie that the car gang would leave her behind just as Kelly did, but this jeopardises the team's plans. She seems to be constantly testing her skills, as she can instinctively case any building she sees. She also seems to have the ability to appear and disappear from locked rooms at will. As a thief, Parker uses little equipment other than a self-modified harness. So, she has excellent upper body strength. She has a soft spot for children and recognizes that her early life has changed her and doesn't want other children to be like her. If Parker has any weaknesses, it's her social skills. Socially inept to a point, she either under- or over-compensates her emotional responses. But she has been working on this with Sophie Devereaux. Since trust doesn't come easy to her, she has varied relationships with the team. While she trusts Eliot, Nate and Sophie, she is closest to Hardison, who has a crush on her. When the team rejoined in Boston, she alluded to Hardison (who told her he looked for her), telling him not to force things and to give time. Parker is the team's wild card, since no one knows what she'll do. Just don't cross her. Parker's only motivation appears to be money. She steals, not for property, or assets, but for cash. She has a very "unique" relationship with cash money, and has the ability to tell the difference between counterfeit and legitimate money by just touch. Skills *Lock picking *Security Circumvention *Intrusion specialist *Pickpocket *Excellent upper body strength *Some hand-to-hand combat *Possible photographic memory and ability to sketch those images *Speaks fluent Spanish *Enjoys using the Taser Gun (at least since Season 2) *High Speed Driving *Car thief (since she was 12 year old) *Wheelman/Getaway Driver Weaknesses *Social skills (working on that with Sophie) *Emotional responses skewed *Initially considered a psychopath, but that perspective has changed over time. Accomplishments *Possibly performed a heist of the French National Bank (which she described as "taking candy from a baby") *Possibly stole "the Caravaggio", in Paris, in 2003 (Out of the three Caravaggio paintings stored in the Louvre, the likeliest one for her to have stolen is The Fortune Teller). *Stole the Polar Star Diamond, along with the Gem of Gibraltar, and performed something called the Damiani Raid. *Stole the Roslaind Diamond in Perth. *Between Season 1 and Season 2, she stole the Hope Diamond, and put it back, because she was bored. *Successfully performed a heist in the Louvre. *Successfully stole the "Lion of Gilgamesh" from Dubai in 2005 Notable Episodes Season 1 * "The Nigerian Job" * "The Stork Job" * "The Juror #6 Job" Season 2 * "The Three Days of the Hunter Job" * "The Ice Man Job" Season 3 * "The Inside Job" * "The Double Blind Job" * "The Boost Job" * "The Underground Job" * "The Rashomon Job" * "The Ho Ho Ho Job" Relationships with Other Characters Alec Hardison Parker often works closest with Hardison, as their two skill sets complement one another. As a result, Hardison has developed a crush on Parker. Parker is either ignorant of or oblivious to this. (In "The Wedding Job", she uses a presumed romantic encounter with Hardison's cover as a fake story. In "The First David Job", she pretends to make out with Hardison to elude physical security.) As Parker and Hardison enter season 2, it is clear that Parker is aware of Hardison's interest, but she waves him off. However, her body language towards him suggests she feels that he is safe, and scenes show her in very close proximity to him. She might not realize she is teasing him, but she is not afraid to put him in a triangle choke hold. In Season 3 Parker is beginning to feel mutual feeling and jealousy as Hardison spends more time with a client. Sophie tells her to tell Hardison how she feels. After a feeble attempt, in which Parker backed out nervously by telling Hardison that she has some feelings on 'pretzels', Hardison explains that he is available whenever she wants. In "The Big Bang Job", Parker tells Hardison she is in the mood for Pretzels, referencing their conversation at the end of "The Double Blind Job". In "The Long Way Down Job" it seemed like They might be dating when she said I should meet your nana at the end. Sophie Devereaux Sophie is a mentor to Parker in her social skills. In "The Juror #6 Job", Sophie coaches Parker in persuading the jury.If Nate were considered the father of the crew, then Sophie would definitely be the mother. While Nate is more like a strict father towards Parker, Sophie is like a caring mother towards her. Sophie guides her and educates her the way an actual mother does. Nathan Ford Of all the Leverage Team members, Parker trusts Nathan the most. Even when Nathan is clearly compromised by alcohol. She does respect Nathan, and fears his reactions, sometimes, as a father figure. One time in particular was "The Boost Job" where she broke her cover on the con, and feared Nate's reaction when he found out.Other than that, Parker is also very afraid of disappointing Nate the way a young child would fear to disappoint her strict father. Eliot Spencer To Parker, Eliot is more like a big brother, as he is very protective of not only her but the whole Leverage team. He insults her a lot; but much of it sounds not unlike a brother would to his annoying little sister. While he is turned off by her personality, that does not affect his trust in her competence as a thief. Sometime before Season 2 he taught her some Mixed-Martial-Arts techniques which allows her to be more physical on the con. They work very well together when paired up. Parker and Eliot have come to realize they have darker pasts compared to the rest of the team, and they will do things the others wont. Other Characters Archie Leach Her adoptive father, and mentor. Twelve years before "The Inside Job" she was a pickpocket in New York City, one of her targets was Leach. Archie took Parker in and trained her to be a master thief. To this day, he calls her "kiddo" and she calls him "sir". This relationship seemed to interfere with her relationship with Nathan and the rest of the team, but in the end she aligned herself with the team over her mentor. At first, Archie did not approve of how Parker had changed under the leadership of Nate, but in the end, he approved of her "new family". Trivia *The series never states Parker's last name, stating that she only has one name. *According to Sterling's people, Parker is wanted in nine countries, including Brazil and Yemen. *Apparently, while she is a master thief, considers the act of illegal downloading as morally wrong. *Does not like horses. *Had a brother who got into an accident. *Like Eliot, who had claustrophobia, she had a fear of the dark. To rid herself of it, she buried herself alive. *Dislikes/Distrusts Psychics *While living in Boston, in addition to having six fake addresses, Parker finds residence in an empty warehouse/storage unit. It is a spartan home, consisting of only a bed, her wardrobe, including all of Parker's Rigs, as well as exercise equipment and a planning board. She still has her bunny doll. *Appears to only eat cereal as her residence is stockpiled with it. Her brand appears to be "Rocket Os" *Has been a cat burglar since the age of 10, but admits that she might have been 9. *Spent 6 months in juvie for helping boost a car. *In her spare time, Parker learns the security and schematics of banks. She knows the exact details of the security of every bank in Boston. Links *http://www.tnt.tv/series/leverage/characters/?contentId=41358 Parker